I’m alive.

I didn’t abandon my old life and run away to Spain with some sexy Spaniard that never wears a shirt.

I didn’t find a cure for the common cold and have been on tour to all major colleges doing speeches on my discovery.

Nope, nothing that thrilling I promise. Just work and life stuff.

Seriously, how do I properly begin a post after being gone for what seems like 3 years in Nest land!? I mean really!? By now half of you have probably announced you’re pregnant with triplets, and the other half has posted some huge make you kick your granny down confessional secret about how you hide fritos and peanut butter under your bed and ravenously binge in the middle of the night and it’s causing problems in your marriage because you’re sweating yucky frito smell through your pores or some other big and very important news.

I feel this immense pressure to say the right thing but who freaking knows what that is!?

I honestly can’t believe I’ve been gone from my favorite place for so long. I have missed you guys so much. I’ve missed just knowing you guys were so close- even though in reality you’re ages away.

I tried to post earlier and then it was sort of like, “Well, I’ve waited this long, plus I feel so behind… what’s another day, besides what would I say??” This has been my mentality for the past week (or two, or three…or I can’t even remember) I honestly can’t stand it…

Like I said- what am I supposed to write about? My absence could be a post in itself but who wants to read that “I’m so busy, blah blah blah” crap. Who freaking isn’t?? so,

Let’s just freaking dive in and pick up where we left off, sans the whole depressing uncle stuff. I figured since I’m unable to host a big party with cute little finger foods for you guys, the best way to reconnect is a I figure it’s time for an enormous Friday Monday Update.

Christmas in Kuwait

I’ll be honest and admit that I’ve been feeling slightly down this year since my Christmas will be spent in a place that doesn’t even celebrate it. No warmth and excitement leading up to the big day, no incredibly pre-packaged shallow commercialized event that has Jolly Ole St. Nick mugging you in the parking lot of Younkers so he can buy lovely Mrs. Claus some cheap vodka.

Ahhh, you gotta miss that Christmas cheer, right?

The truth is, I do. I know that’s not the “real meaning” of Christmas, but it is nice having Christmas on the forefront of your mind everyday. It’s so different here. I know Christmas is next week, but it just seems like it will be another day. I’m sure my attitude of having to be here during this time of year doesn’t add to the already morose atmosphere of all contractors within a 40 mile radius. Thankfully for me, though, I have my family here! I can’t even imagine how it must be for the majority that doesn’t.

My mom is spending Christmas in Colorado. My dad, sister, and Molly arrived in Kuwait last week, but my mom felt she should stay through Christmas, which is understandable (though now, however, I wonder if she’ll be stranded through new years with this blizzard!) So, she won’t be home for the actual holiday. We decided to go ahead and wait to celebrate until she got home, and on Thursday we will do just that. She gets the most joy out of everything anyway, and it just wouldn’t be right to have Christmas without her. I think Dec 25th might just be a lazy day for me and Will. The good thing is that since Kuwait doesn’t celebrate Christmas, every restaurant will be open and ready to deliver. We will probably just stay in and watch movies and eat...and eat… and eat. Christmas warrants a glutonous day, right? I’m thinking Krispe Kremes for breakfast (they just opened one in Marina Mall a couple months ago, so now we have Dunkin’ Donuts AND Krispe Kreme all the way in Kuwait!), though I think it would be fun to make pancakes (Will hates pancakes), followed by some terrible lunch and an even worse gooey, sugary, make your teeth melt upon sight late night snack in which we will call dinner. Then we’ll get to do it all over again on the 27th. Not too shabby if you ask me.

I think my sister’s boyfriend is spending Christmas with us this year too. I keep thinking we need to buy some fun games to play to initiate Z a little more into the family, but the price of American games here is outrageous. Will and I looked at the Sultan Center (like an Arabic Walmart but less screaming kids with snot hanging out of their noses, and less belly button lint protruding through pink spandex) the other day and some of them were as much as 75 bucks! What a rip.

On that same note, I reached to buy Will some American Orange Juice and was stunned to see it was a whopping 4.5 KD- which translates to $15.57. Can you belive that! I also reached for some US soy milk, only I saw it was 5.7 KD. After the produce guy helped me up off the floor, I opted to buy the EXACT SAME STUFF, only it has Arabic on the back instead of all English. Isn’t it crazy that it changes so much? It’s probably also because it’s produced somewhere closer, but really! Same brand and everything.

Hmmm… how did I go from Christmas to orange juice?… I’ve REALLY needed to post…

That’s the Christmas plan. I also think I’m going to take a personal day on the 26th so that should be nice too. Virtually everyone on my office will be gone this week (besides me and another guy), so I figured I might as well use my last hours before they go away on the 31st. I’m hoping to hang out with my sister and spend some of the gift cards I received aout 16 months ago or something like that. I’ve been anxious to use my Ikea gift card. The old Ikea closed here because they just opened a massive superstore last month. it’s very exciting. It’s attached to the largest mall in the country or some nonsense like that. anyway, that’s my ramble on Christmas.

Life as the Ball and Chain

Things on the marriage front are fine and dandy and pretty static. I think Will and I are at the point in our marriage where the goal is pretty much to drive each other crazy! ha ha. We’ve really gotten to know each other so much better this year. We’ve been on this big honesty kick lately. I don’t say that to mean, “Hey, why do we try being truthful with one another” as if we’ve been keeping big Maury Povich Show-like secrets. It’s more like, “Weeeeeel Will, since we’re on this “honesty thing (that’s what we call it),” it REALLY kills me when you pick the sock lint out of your feet and leave it on the floor (I’m even convulsing as I write the stupid sentence).

It’s been a lot of fun and a lot of annoying at the same time.

It still amazes me how much closer we are still able to get. It’s hard to think we’ll continue to get even closer as each month and year passes, but we will.

We’ve been talking about our future in Kuwait as well as what’s next for us, but things are still too sketchy to share because we still don’t know ourselves!

We’ve also been talking about our next mini-getaway which will “tide us over” until we’re able to go home for a real vacation. Will has left the decision up to me! I thought it was really sweet and I’m looking forward to it. It will only be about a 4 day vacation so we can’t go anywhere too terribly far. I’ve been thinking about Oman or Cyprus. Turkey and Egypt are also options, though I don’t think they’re really in the running compared to the other two destinations.

My sweet husband is currently passed out on the couch. We got up at 4 to watch the Packer’s game, but he slept more than watched.

Speaking of watched, Will now thinks we “need” a 42 inch plasma TV here. Now, I’m trying to be the nice supportive wife, but I nearly came unglued when he casually mentioned it to me yesterday in his typical, “By the way, R and I have been eyeing this overly priced, enormous TV for THE LAST THREE WEEKS and I just now thought I would bring it to your attention before I buy it tomorrow!!!!” okay,as you can see that’s my own rage and interpretation of the situation coming out, but it sort of went like that- only not really.

The whole thing upsets me because we’re here to save, not spend. Plus even if someone will buy it from us before we go home, we’ll never get what it was worth. We’ve aqquired so much “Stuff” since we’ve been here and that was never the plan. To me it seems stupid to buy a new TV when we already have a free one. Plus this isn’t our home so why spend money on a plasma TV we’re not going to keep?? Now I’m faced with a decision, should I be the wonderful wife that supports the TV decision or am I the dream killer? Such pressure! I’ll have to let you know how that goes.

The Other Ball and Chains

The dogs are totally classified as another ball and chain. I swear, it’s like we just had 2 children only they’re hairy and instead of crapping in a diaper they crap all over our floor. Gosh they’re cute though.

Boz and Lucy got their adult desires taken care of last week and I’ve been sleeping much better. I’m a little sad because the whole event truly deserved it’s own post but now it’s a little after the fact. I’ll simply tell you the place is super sketchy (but apparently very reputable). The vet came out in a greasy smeary butcher’s apron with feather’s stuck to his shoe and might as well have asked if we wanted the veal instead of when we could pick up the dogs following surgery. I felt apprehensive about leaving the pups at The Deli, but thankfully all ended well. Lucy gets her stitches out next week and we’ll finally be able to bathe them. They’re turning gray. Poor little cute uglies.

I mentioned that my family brought Molly along to Colorado. At first I had wished they would have just left her with us because I figured she’d be more of a liabilty than anything, but apparently Molly’s presence was a blessing. Malteses are so friendly, and Molly is no exception. She brought comfort to a lot of people. My dad said there wasn’t a moment in which she wasn’t being held by someone in the family. They just loved that little furball. I was glad to hear that. It’s amazing what joy a dog can bring (though I’m not thinking about joy when I’m wiping poop out of their tiny little butts- trust me). I only wish our poor dogs weren’t so stupid… really- they’re cute but pretty dumb. My deep question is: How in the world can such tiny dogs poop sOOO freaking much!?

Maid Clean

The dog’s messiness has been a point of contention between me and Will. The stinky dogs that crap everywhere and the fact that ever since I got this new job I’ve been too busy and tired to even thinking about maintaining a decent house has pretty much set the stage for arguments.

Our poor little abode is a sad sight. The only reason I’m glad we don’t have friends here is because I would absolutely die if someone ever popped in and saw the horror. They might go blind. It really looks like our house threw up on itself. It’s an embarrassing mess.

It looks a little like this: 

only it’s no longer confined to the dog’s room and there’s a little less pee on the walls. Okay, so I might be exaggerating a little , but the house has put me in a terrible mood, which puts Will in a terrible mood, which just makes us big “Yucky Moods” sitting in a big yucky mood apartment.

On average, the house has caused about an argument a week, and if I do the math it adds up to too many messy apartment fights in a year and that equals needing to make a change.

Virtually every contractor here has some sort of a housekeeper (that is no exaggeration). We’ve truly been the minority the past year and a half. People look at me weird when I say we don’t have one as if to say, “You’re a freaking moronic idiot. Why WOULDN’T you have one here?”

I respond with, ”Thanks guys. Why don’t you tell me what you really think?“

I’ve always had that holier than thou, “I don’t need someone else to take care of my family, “ blah blah blah crap attitude. The truth is, I do need some help and there’s no shame in asking for it- especially over here! For about $75 a month we can have someone come clean our house once a week. If you ask me, that’s a steal. It’d almost be weird NOT to take advantage of such a good deal- just like everyone has been telling me for months.

Will has been adamantly against a maid because he doesn’t want someone coming in and cleaning our super fancy company issued stuff (ha ha), but I think he realizes if he wants a happy wife (and in turn a happier life for himself), he’s going to have to budge a little on this one. I’ve been about as unbearable to live with as the house has been. Alright, maybe I haven’t been THAT bad, but it has made me edgy and there’s been no need for Will to pull the “Since we’re on this ‘honesty thing’” conversation because I already know it without him having to point it out.

So- the problem has been solved. Thank goodness for inexpensive help. I think Will will scoop this woman up in his arms and thank her for giving him his wife back. ha ha.

A Diet Called Work.

I’ve found the most amazing diet, guys! It’s called Work- guaranteed to whip your body into shape (or cause an ulcer) or your money back. I’ve been on the work diet for about a month now and have never received more compliments. (I’m grumbling to myself because this deserves to be it’s own post but I have too much to cover to do it proper justice) This diet consists of being too busy to indulge and therefore eating strange concoctions like tuna & chickpeas for lunch to ensure fiber and protien consumption, or strange liquids just to add to the day’s calorie count.

The truth is that I’ve never been healthier. I’ve been too busy to idly snack, and have brought healthy lunches with me so I could continue to work without stopping to grab something greasy and carb filled.

I also feel like my weight lifting is FINALLY starting to pay off. I can tell a difference in my body and strength. The Work Diet coupled with the weights have really made a difference. The trouble is that I bought a lot of new clothes on vacation and am going to have to mess around with getting them altered. I guess that’s a good problem though.

I’ve also finally mustered up the guts to take that belly dancing I mentioned, oh, about 3 months ago. I got the schedule and told my sister I’d pay if she came along with me (that way we can stand in the back and laugh at me). I like to dance but dancing doesn’t seem to like me. Nonetheless I’m really excited about the class. It’s such an ancient tradition and to learn from a real life Arabic woman while I’m in the Middle East is just too interesting to pass up. It just seems cooler to actually learn it where they’ve been doing it for thousands of years. Plus, i’ve heard rumors that the recently elected religiously conservative sect of government would like to outlaw belly dancing, and if that’s true I better learn while I still can.  How could I skip out on belly dancing even if I do look like a wiggly pasty white donut, right? Exactly. My first class is next week.

The Fam

Things with my family are okay- as good as can be expected I guess. It’s been a difficult couple of weeks but it just drives home the fact that I’m so thankful for the support I have in my family.

Today, however, has been another one of those difficult days. Not so much for me, but for my mom and dad as well as my mom’s entire side of the family. In an almost ironic tragic fashion, another extremely close family friend was killed in an accident on his farm (which is how my uncle was killed) late last night (yesterday afternoon your time). I got the text this morning and just couldn’t believe it.

My mom comes from a tiny little town in Colorado and it’s unsettling to think that in less than 2 weeks that small town has lost two of their friends. It was such a surprise to read. I haven’t talked to my dad yet (it’s still early here), but I know this makes things harder for my mom since she’s grown up with this person. Please just say a prayer for this little town and the community members as well as the S family. Sorry to be a downer! I just know my mom’s side of the family is already aching and then to lose such a close friend makes things so much harder. Okay, enough of that. I just needed to get it out.

Let’s Lighten the Mood

Last weekend Will and I went to my parent’s house to check on everything and hang a friendly, “We missed you sign” up. I thought it would be nice of me to be a good and responsible daughter, you know to help out and remind my family why they keep me around, so I decided to wash the few dishes my mom had left behind so she wouldn’t have anything to do when she got home.

However, I’m lazy. Why hand wash a whole whopping 5 dishes when instead I could pop them in the dishwasher and forget abut them, right?

My point exactly.

I put the dishes in the washer and started a hunt for dish soap.

No dish soap.

“Hmm, no dish soap…”

I begin to search under the sink for liquid dish soap- because that’s as great as the powder, right?

Bingo!

I fill both of the little soap slots with liquid dish slots…

Do you see the disastrous turn this story is taking?

Why didn’t you stop me then!?

…

I start the washer and all is fine, oh, until about 10 minutes in.

I walk in the kitchen and see little bubbles begin to peek out of the washer. In my normal Brittny fashion, I panic like young husband in the tampon aisle.

I stop the washer and assess the damage- all the while bubbles are pushing their way out of the washer. What a mess, guys. I had to scoop out bubbles by hand and put them in a trash bag. There are a lot of things that got me to the point and failed (like putting the bubbles in the sink and running the water to get them to “pop” yes, I realize that was really stupid, and no, it didn’t work). I finally give up and do what I tried so hard to avoid- hand was the dishes. I then realize that no matter how much I try, those bubbles are going to stay put. I left the washer open and said a prayer that by the time my dad and sister came home, all the bubbles would be gone.

Apparently they were. Thank goodness! That’s my bubble nightmare story in a nutshell.

Odds and Ends

-Work is keeping me really busy. I’m trying to be a sponge and soak everything up I can so one day I can take what I learn and make it a career.

-I’m reading a fascinating book on eschatology (wow! You guys didn’t know I was a smartie did you? Ha ha). It’s the second I’ve read since vacation. It still blows me away to think I’m living in a place where there is so much past history that still affects today and the future. Craziness I tell you!

-Winter is amazing here. I truly enjoy being here this time of year (minus the whole Christmas thing). My dad, Will, and I had Hard Rock for lunch yesterday. Afterwards we took a walk along the beach (not on the sand but on this walk way sort of thing). There were so many “picnicers” enjoying the day. They sun was shining, and it was just a beautiful day. I wish I could have shared it with you. If only Kuwait were like this longer.

When am I going to freaking post next already!?

Sadly I think I’m going to become a weekend poster. I hate that, but it seems as though that’s the way things are going. Let’s hope not, but if that is in fact the case, I promise to be better about posting and feedback. Let’s face it, I’ve been a sorry excuse for a blogger. I won’t be AS sucky from now on, okay? Plus I think my sister did in fact get me a voice recorder as I requested (since I’m a blogging nerd) so I won’t forget all the important crap I want to talk about. I’ve missed you all so much. I hope I haven’t missed too muh I really love you guys and the community we share. To the sweet friends that wanted to make sure I wasn’t stranded in the desert with a volleyball I had affectionately named Wilson, thanks for your caring hearts. I needed that last week. <3

Have a wonderful Christmas. I look forward to hearing about it.

More to come… (I promise)